Amundi Purchases 29,725 Shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT)

Amundi grew its position in Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) by 16.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 214,859 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 29,725 shares during the period. Amundi’s holdings in Alliant Energy were worth $12,505,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 167,653 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,915,000 after buying an additional 2,565 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 67.5% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 722 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 291 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 55,972 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,310,000 after buying an additional 1,186 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Alliant Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $699,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Alliant Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $20,677,000. Institutional investors own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on LNT shares. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Alliant Energy from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Scotiabank cut shares of Alliant Energy from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $64.00 to $67.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $57.00 price objective on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Alliant Energy currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $63.25.

Alliant Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LNT opened at $62.95 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $60.73 and a 200-day moving average of $60.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.16 billion, a PE ratio of 23.40, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. Alliant Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $47.23 and a 12 month high of $66.54.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $976.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.14 billion. Alliant Energy had a net margin of 17.33% and a return on equity of 11.39%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Alliant Energy Co. will post 3.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were given a $0.5075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. This is a boost from Alliant Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Alliant Energy’s payout ratio is presently 75.46%.

About Alliant Energy

Alliant Energy Corporation operates as a utility holding company that provides regulated electricity and natural gas services in the United States. It operates in three segments: Utility Electric Operations, Utility Gas Operations, and Utility Other. The company, through its subsidiary, Interstate Power and Light Company (IPL), primarily generates and distributes electricity, and distributes and transports natural gas to retail customers in Iowa; sells electricity to wholesale customers in Minnesota, Illinois, and Iowa; and generates and distributes steam in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.